1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to insulative coverings, and more particularly to insulative coverings adapted to surround a pipe elbow.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many types of pipes, or odd shaped objects, or wires need to be surrounded with loose material for proper utilization. Typical loose material includes heat or electrical insulation. Where a pipe or wire changes direction or size it is useful to have a relatively simple means to securely hold the loose material to the pipe and to protect the loose material from scraping and other possible causes of damage. It is frequently advantageous to hold the loose material within a cross sectional area of a selected diameter. For other applications the diameter or shape of the cross sectional area should vary along the length of the pipe or wire. The prior art discloses several means to hold loose material to a pipefitting, such as covers formed from half sections of a suitable material such as plastic, cardboard or aluminum which are placed on the fitting, shaped if necessary, and affixed by an adhesive or screws or bolts. An alternative prior art technique includes the formation of a fabric-adhesive composite of alternate layers of fabric and adhesive. This method is very time consuming, since allowance must be made for the setting of the adhesive.
A third alternative includes the use of an elongated smooth surfaced, flexible article, fabricated from plastic, fiberglass or similar materials.
In each case, loose material or other insulative structure is packed around the pipefittings, the cover is placed to surround the material and the pipefitting is nailed, tacked, screwed, banded, stapled or attached by an adhesive. None of the prior art methods provide for a cover, however, which can be arranged in either of two stable states, one state allowing for the placement of the cover while the other state fixing the cover in place to surround the insulative structure.